Back to Gabapentin

[Lazarus]

Thanks everyone. Interesting reading. I deal with spasms in my chest, esophagus and now in my legs. The leg cramps are as painful as my chest ones. (MS hug). Anyway, like Snack I used to be able to walk off the leg cramps but not so anymore. Many of these spasms occur at night. We don’t know why and sometimes they show up in the daytim. (Especially the spasms in my esophagus).
Anyway, I have settled on using 5 mg Valium. It works instantly and the cramps and spasms are gone until they show up again. Actually I have started crushing the Valium and dividing it so I am taking about 21/2 mg.

I get days of cramping and spamming and then it stops for a couple of weeks. So my minimal Valium ( which is a muscle relaxer) works well for me.

[Virginia]

Linda, I take 1/2 valium twice a day and other sedating medications.

[Sunshine]

Virginia and Laz:
My doc said not to do either ativan or Valium more than 3, 4tops, weekly to avoid tolerance and addiction. Tolerance means the drug becomes less effective, needing to increase dose, and becomes ineffective and yet the body is addicted to it. That’s why I don’t use it daily...
What do your docs say?

[Virginia]

Sunshine, I have been doing this for many years. My Doctors just don't say. They keep telling me to take it. I have never upped my dose. I have wondered how much good it is doing because of the tolerance that I would have built up, but when I cut the 1/2 pill into about a quarter I have more spasticity it seems. I still have some spasticity, but not as much. I often just cut a little corner off the 1/2 pill in order to cut down on my medication.

[Lazarus]

Virginia and Laz:
My doc said not to do either ativan or Valium more than 3, 4tops, weekly to avoid tolerance and addiction. Tolerance means the drug becomes less effective, needing to increase dose, and becomes ineffective and yet the body is addicted to it. That’s why I don’t use it daily...
What do your docs say?

My docs know that I tolerate a lot before I even take the drug they have prescribed so I don’t get much warning anymore. My neuro gave me 5 mg pills and I am crushing them and taking half a pill which eases but does not stop the pain. My 4 spasms come very 3 or 4 weeks and hang around for a number of days.
Of the 30 5 mg Valium pills I got 4 months ago I still have 7.